Bits: BA long-haul cancellations for 2018, 13200 Avios with an Economist subscription

News in brief:

British Airways long-haul cancellations for 2018

Earlier this week we covered the new British Airways long-haul services from London Gatwick to Toronto and Las Vegas.  These flights are currently wide-open for Avios redemptions if you want to book.

I was wondering where the aircraft were coming from, and now we have a partial answer.  BA has announced the following cancellations for next Summer.  You may already be booked on one of these services – if so, give BA a call now.  Don’t wait for them to contact you because the best rebooking options may already be gone.

Oakland (from Gatwick) – Tuesday flight cancelled from 27th March

Orlando (from Gatwick) – Friday flight BA2039 cancelled from 4th May

Kingston (from Gatwick) – Sunday flight cancelled from 6th May

Las Vegas (from Heathrow) – Friday flight BA271 cancelled from 6th April

13,200 Avios for an Economist subscription

Iberia Plus and The Economist have brought back their special offer for taking out a subscription.

As you can see at this link, you can earn 13,200 Avios in Iberia Plus if you take out a 1-year digital and print subscription to The Economist. The cost is £179.  This works out at 1.35p per Avios.

Alternatively, you can earn 10,200 Avios with a £145 print-only or digital-only subscription.  This works out at 1.4p per point.

This offer is particularly attractive if you are self-employed or run a company.  Whilst I am not a tax expert and you should obviously take your own advice if necessary, it would be hard to argue that The Economist magazine is not an acceptable tax-deductible purchase for most business people.

The price charged seems to be in line with the price charged via other channels so you are not over-paying.

You will need an Iberia Plus account to take part. Once the Avios points arrive – and as long as your Iberia account is over 90 days old – you can convert them to British Airways or avios.com via the ‘Combine my Avios’ function online.

The Economist changed the rules of this promotion two years ago after a large number of people took out a subscription and then cancelled it for a partial refund a few weeks later.  Your subscription is now non-refundable.  However, £179 for 13,200 Avios plus a full year of The Economist in print and online is certainly not a bad deal.

If you have any friends in the United States who may enjoy The Economist in print (you could access the digital version yourself), there is still a deal to be had.  The cost is $190 (£142) for 13,200 Avios.

Note also that the DIGITAL ONLY version for US residents is $152 (£117) and you get 10,200 Avios for yourself.

Some people have had trouble getting their Avios to post from this offer in the past, so take screenshots and be prepared to send a few grumpy emails back and forth.

The offer runs until 31st October 2017.

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (December 2021)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

British Airways American Express

5,000 Avios for signing up, no annual fee and an Economy 2-4-1 voucher for spending ….. Read our full review

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the UK’s most valuable credit card perk – the 2-4-1 companion voucher Read our full review

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points, such as:

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & two airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

30,000 points and an unbeatable set of travel benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital On Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios:

Capital On Tap Business Rewards Visa

The most generous Avios Visa or Mastercard for a limited company Read our full review

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus:

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.

(Want to earn more Avios?  Click here to visit our home page for our latest articles on earning and spending your Avios points and click here to see how to earn more Avios this month from offers and promotions.)